Boracay Birthday Getaway: I'm still a paranoid flyer

I wish I could be one of those people who flies in and out with a breeze. I cannot fly with ease. I had to calm my self down, pray to St. Joseph and brace my self for turbulence, although I love take offs and landings. I wish I can get one of those pills that Kuya talked about before. In UK, you can go to your doctor, tell him you're a nervous flyer, then they can give you some anti-anxiety pills. Funny, for a nervous flyer like me, I still get excited about seat sales, will book 'em in a jiffy then deal with paranoia later. I totally understand why people get drunk on the plane.

More after the jump!



I traveled with two Arians, both on Airphilexpress. One is with Faye when we went to Bicol last April 2011, and my sister Aprille when we went to Boracay for my birthday getaway 2012. Both have the special powers to take a nap as soon as we find our seats. I have to distract myself with either reading a book or people watch inside the plane.

When we boarded our plane, I got nervous about the propeller. Of course I know air buses can't land on the Caticlan airport due to it's cute runway size.

 I listen to the flight attendants demo, though most of them looked bored like while demonstrating safety precautions.

Leaving Manila

On with the clouds.

When I was a kid, I planned on opening the window of the plane and getting a cloud from the outside and put it in my empty mayonnaise jar. (mayonnaise jar talaga?!)

 I smile when I see this on the window.

 Look how tiny the aircraft is.

 It's been three years and Caticlan Airport changed a lot. For starters... this is what it looks like now.

 Thank you airphilexpress for the nice flight. Although, when we first boarded the plane, the whole plane smells like shit and I kid you not. It's like someone took a dump on their seat, kept it a secret and none of the flight attendants were able to find it.

My sister, the interrogator. Her personal agenda is to find out the history of Boracay.

They handled our luggages well.

 And all tourist/guests must register!

We can no longer take home beach sands. Now on with the luggage...

 This is probably my second best domestic airport. The top of my list goes to Cebu, then Caticlan, then Davao.

They have nice, clean restrooms that I hope Ms. Cecile Van Straten @chuvaness approves:

I missed their tricycle! It's so big! They take you to the jetty port where you ride the boat going to the Boracay Island.

I do not understand these terminal fees. Php100 just for passing by. The Environmental fee costs P75.00, it's like before you mess up the island, we charge you beforehand. 

Then on our 4th day, we headed back to Manila and boarded the same airphilexpress airline. 

And I kid you not, once again, it smells like shit. It's like being on the exact smelly plane after being away for 3 nights and 4 days.

When I got back and during the surprise mini-party my friends organized for me, I learned that airphilexpress is known for their smelly planes.

I wish I could be like my sister who dozed off before the take off. I was suffering with paranoia and of inhaling the smelly plane.

Now we're getting near Manila again.

 My sister can identify where is Nuvali, Taal, Ayala Alabang Village, and I couldn't even tell which is which.

Thank you airphilexpress for the safe flight. Even though we got our tickets cheap, still it's not acceptable to have your planes smelling like poop.

My sister took this video of our plane's landing when we arrived in Manila from Boracay:


The Landing from The Kea Channel on Vimeo.

Pretty cool huh?

I was reading a nervous flyer forum earlier and saw this:

Somebody asked:

I am Paranoid that the Airplane I will travel on will fall, Help? - Jim, 14 years old

Then this was the chosen best answer:

I have a friend who is an overseas Captain for Delta Airlines. He has to drive 80 mile to go to the airport and from there he will fly to the Atlanta airport where he Captains a plane to places like Dubai and Singapore. He tells me that that the most unsafe part of his trip is to get in his car and drive the 80 miles. He is absolutely unafraid to fly but a bit nervous about driving because he knows he has a 1 in 29 million chance of dying in the plane but a 1 in 5,000 chance of dying in a car accident. 

Coming to the US you have statistically better odds of dying from walking, swimming, biking and riding in a car. 

Following 9/11 people in the US used flying much less as a means to travel.
Studies at Cornell and the University of Michigan estimate that between 700 and 1,000 more people died in motor vehicle crashes from October through December of 2001 than during the same three months the year before.

The fear of flying in an irrational fear. Since there is not enough time to go to a therapist in order to over come this fear why don't you trust my pilot friend. He may fly as many as 14 million miles a year. Really he should know whether or not to be afraid.
Austrian Air has not had a fatal accident in 42 years, another reason not to be afraid.
Try dramamine for motion sickness. I am sure you can think of a way to take care of your boredom on the plane you are a teenager for goodness sake.

I hope this helps. Enjoy you trip to the US, I am happy you are getting the opportunity to come

Source(s):
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/space/how-risky-is-flying.html
http://www.quora.com/How-many-miles-can-a-trans-Atlantic-airline-pilot-expect-to-fly-during-their-career

He even cited his sources! But then the real catch is...Oh dear. I have the same concern as a 14 year old.  :)